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Local News
Honoring their classmate By Heather Wilkerson | Daily Times Staff Writer Early one spring morning, five gray-haired men, who long ago graduated from Lucama High School, gathered around a six-man table at Bojangles. There was a symbolic empty seat. Someone was missing. That someone was a dear classmate and friend who has been missing for more than 40 years. That morning, his friends vowed that even though he is gone, he will never be forgotten. On March 13, 1968, United States Army Chief Warrant Officer Jimmy Lee Watson was piloting a Huey helicopter when it was struck by small arms fire, causing him to make an emergency landing in Thua Thien Province of South Vietnam. Of the 10 men onboard, five returned safely to camp. Search teams were unable to find the other five men, or any evidence of the helicopter. Two weeks later, on March 28, a unit of the 101st Airborne found two of the five missing soldiers buried in shallow graves. Watson was not one of them. He and the two other soldiers, were considered missing in a2ction. Watson would turn 62 this month, and although he is not here to celebrate his birthday or his upcoming Lucama High School Class of 1964 reunion, he will be the center of attention at a recognition service planned in his honor. James Boyette, who now resides in Tallahassee, Fla., and Chris Raper of Elm City are spearheading the service. "When our class is gone, he will be forgotten," Boyette said. "We're not going to let that happen." On July 19, at 4 p.m. at the Lucama Elementary School auditorium, Watson will be remembered and honored by his classmates. There were 32 people in the class of 1964. When the planning process for this service first started many months ago, Boyette and Raper realized that not knowing what happened to Watson had an effect on all of their classmates. "There is a huge hole individually and collectively," Boyette said. "We want to know what happened to him. We want to move on as a class. The hole will always be there, but we want some closure." With renewed interested, Raper began a more diligent search for answers. Although there has never been any official word from the military to the Watson family, Raper's extensive research of declassified U.S. Government files has been able to shed some light on those dark days in Vietnam. One document revealed information reported on Nov. 11, 1974, to John G. Rogers with the Joint Casualty Resolution Center. The information, based on analysis of witness statements, was that, "there is strong, confirming testimony that in fact, all five Americans were killed and buried ..." A 1995 letter to the sister of one of the missing five crew members, Sgt. Steven W. Heitman, from Mr. James W. Wold, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for POW/MIA Affairs, stated "Five of the crewmen walked to the camp while Sergeant Heitman and four others remained behind to secure the helicopter. These men were subsequently attacked and killed by a large enemy force." In 1973, a "data plate" from the missing helicopter was found near the emergency landing site. Other declassified reports gave names and statements of both participants and witnesses of the battle that allegedly resulted in their deaths. The reports also detailed possible burial site locations for Watson and the other two missing soldiers. The validity of these reports generated several archeological digs by United States Government teams during the mid 1990s. Extensive excavations of those areas failed to reveal any evidence of the three missing soldiers. For Boyette and Raper, all this documentation provides some of the closure they are seeking. "Being a retired police detective, I knew early on that with the passage of 40 years, it would be difficult to get information," Raper said. "The United States Government pretty much washed its hands of the POW/MIA issue in the early 90s with the passage of the McCain Act." The McCain Act, Raper said, set up a repository for all MIA/POW records and allowed the public to research their own POW/MIA cases. The repository was housed at the Library of Congress. Raper's research revealed more than 300 pages of documentation pertaining to the case of the five missing soldiers. "The irony of this is that there are many, many other POW/MIA's whose families are still waiting for news," Raper said. At least the result of his research has allowed closure, Raper said. "I no longer have to wonder if Jimmy Lee was taken prisoner and tortured. I also believe that someday he will be returned to us." At the service later this month, the class will get a chance to paint a portrait of Watson. Boyette and Raper have nothing but fond memories of their friend. Watson was the class clown, Boyette said. "He was mischievous and always into something." Watson got up early and delivered the newspaper before he went to school, Raper said. And he probably had the biggest baseball card collection of anyone around. "He was a real sharp dresser too," Raper said. "I remember some shoes he had. It is funny what we recollect." Boyette was going through his closet about a year ago and came across some red pants he'd picked up on sale. "I'm not sure why I bought them," he said, "but I tried them on, they fit, and all of a sudden I was thrown back 38-39 years. I remembered Jimmy Lee wearing a pair of red pants. I had green ones and we would plan to wear them on the same day. We'd get to school and play the fool." It's memories like that that will always keep Watson alive in their hearts, the two said. Boyette's goal is to eventually build a memorial right there at the Lucama school. "We would love nothing more than to have a lasting memorial to him," he said. The class reunion will follow the service, at 6 p.m. in the fellowship hall at Little Rock Original Free Will Baptist Church. heather@wilsontimes.com | 265-7811
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